Strategic Thesis Collection Management through Statistical Analysis

Abstract

The thesis collection at the University of Colombo's (UOC's) Main Library (ML) plays a vital role in undergraduate and postgraduate education, serving as a repository of scholarly work produced by the students in Masters, MPhil, and PhD degree programs in five faculties. The collection reflects the academic output of the UOC student and serves as a valuable resource for researchers, academic staff, and students. A comprehensive understanding of the Main Library Thesis Collection (MLTC) content and patterns is required for effective management and utilisation. Therefore, in this study, content analysis of the MLTC was done through statistical analysis. Statistical analysis of the thesis collections at the UOC Main Library is the main objective of this research. Further, the paper examined the (1) faculty-wise and year-wise publication of the theses, (2) degree level-wise distribution of the theses, and (3) subject-wise distribution of the theses within the MLTC. For this study, it has used all theses contained in the MLTC, and it is around 1827 theses. Data collection and analysis were done from July 2023 to September 2023. Excel data analysis tool pack and its features were used for data analysis. The MLTC contains theses from six faculties (Arts, Education (FED), Graduate Studies, Law, Management, and Science). According to the findings, FED is the most prominent faculty contributing to the library's thesis collection. The year-wise distribution of the theses at the MLTC indicates that the highest number is from 2000-2009, followed by 2010-2019. The collection includes 181 PhD, 280 MPhil, and 1366 master's theses. When considering the main ten categorisations of the Dewey Decimal Classification, 67% of these are in Social Sciences, and 12% are in Technology. Considering the physical condition of the theses, most of the theses in the MLTC are in excellent condition. It is evident the institution's commitment to maintaining the highest preservation standards. As a result of the findings, the following recommendations were made regarding the MLTC: (1) Increasing the contribution of the Faculty of Law, (2) Increasing the presence of PhD theses, (3) Enhancing representation in underrepresented subject areas, and (4) Digital preservation and access.